The Tipping Point for a Peaceful Home

I don’t know who recommendedThe Tipping Pointby Malcolm Gladwell, but I picked it up two weeks ago not knowing what it was about. After reading 300 pages about epidemics, I came away with one key point about simplifying: context matters.

According to the Gladwell, “what really matters is little things….You can prevent crimes just by scrubbing off graffiti and arresting fare-beaters…..it is possible to be a better person on a clean street or in a clean subway than in one littered with trash and graffiti” (150-168).

That last sentence (emphasis mine) really stuck with me. It’s possible to be a better person in a nice place because a cared-for environment shows that someone will notice when it’s messy and work to change it. This is why a peaceful home is a clean home. It’s because we feel like someone will notice when it’s out of place, and so we all do our part to keep it tidy together.

It’s a far cry from dirty dishes in the sink to the crime rate of New York, but there’s a lesson I can learn here: Keeping a home clean and uncluttered means that everyone will feel better. I think I can live with that.

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6 responses

“Keeping a home clean and uncluttered means that everyone will feel better.” This is such a profound statement! Not only does everything seem less stressful when our home is in order, I feel like my brain is more organized when my world is organized.

For me I have sections of organized clutter. I have found that it is hard for me to force myself into during the month, so I have several baskets, and drawers throughout my house, filled with the months worth of clutter that I then organize at the end. That way I always feel as though my house is clutter free and the common areas always are, like the tables, desktops, kitchen sink etc. Just don’t look in my baskets.🙂